The UNECE Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (RFSD) is part of a series of forums organised by the UN regional bodies in preparation for the 2017 High Level Policy Forum (HLPF), the follow-up mechanism for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The RFSD brought together Member States, international and regional organisations, civil society, trade unions, academia and the private sector.

The trade union delegation was coordinated by the TUDCN and was made up of Joan Lanfranco (ITUC-TUDCN), Gemma Arpaia (ISCOS, Italy), Anton Leppik (ETUC/PERC) and Hans Laugesen (DFL, Denmark). A statement was delivered on behalf of the Workers and Trade Union Major Group in the context of the round table on data and monitoring. It highlighted the need for a participatory process in which trade unions and civil society play a crucial verification role. The full trade union statement is available here.

Nurgul Dzhanaeva, of the Forum of Women’s NGOs of Kyrgyzstan delivered the statement on behalf of CSOs. It proposed the creation of an adequate fiscal space to support social policies, which, through redistributive tax systems, would help to prevent and navigate crises. It called for measures to ensure women’s participation at local, national, regional and global levels and to secure proper coverage of sexual and reproductive health and rights. It demanded that women’s rights be mainstreamed across all SDGs. Furthermore, the statement insisted on the need for public-private partnerships and blended finance mechanisms to comply with development effectiveness principles and to include CSOs across the project cycle.

In addition, the CSO Forum participants agreed to the creation of a civil society engagement mechanism similar to the RCEM in the Asia-Pacific region.